Bellator 77 Results: Quartet of competitors move on to Season 7 lightweight semis

Though a title-fight between Bellator lightweight champ Michael Chandler and talented judoka Rick Hawn has yet to take place, the organization is already busy lining up a challenger to face the winner of their upcoming bout. The opening round of the organization’s Season 7 tournament took place last night at Bellator 77 where grappling reigned supreme, showing either Chandler or Hawn are in for a test at some point down the road considering their respective accomplishments on the mat.

The biggest win of the night was earned by seasoned scrapper Rich Clementi. The UFC veteran handed much-hyped prospect Alexander Sarnavskiy the first loss of his career. Clementi’s success came as the result of his relentless pace, scoring numerous takedowns and nearly choking the Russian out before the opening round expired. In the end, “No Love” was awarded a Unanimous Decision and will compete in a month as part of the semifinal field.

Other lightweights exiting the evening with a hand raised were Dave Jansen and Ricardo Tirloni, who choked out Magomed Saadulaev and Rene Nazare respectively, as well as leg-lock specialist Marcin Held who notched a Unanimous Decision nod against Murad Machaev.

The full list of Bellator 77 results can be found below:

Matt Lozano def. Dave Morgan via Submission Round 2 (Inverted Triangle Choke)
Darrel Horcher def. Emanuel Brooks via Knockout Round 1 (Strikes)
Ariel Sepulveda def. Duane Bastress via Split Decision
Cosmo Alexander def. Mike Bannon via TKO Round 2 (Doctor’s Stoppage)
Brett Martinez def. Eric Albright via Submission Round 2 (Guillotine Choke)
Lew Polley def. Carmelo Marrero via Unanimous Decision
Ricardo Tirloni def. Rene Nazare via Technical Submission Round 2 (D’Arce Choke)
Marcin Held def. Murad Machaev via Unanimous Decision
Dave Jansen def. Magomed Saadulaev via Submission Round 3 (Guillotine Choke)
Rich Clementi def. Alexander Sarnavskiy via Split Decision